The Energon Pub

Ryan has met and spoken with a Distributor from Japan who had a booth at Toy Fair 2007 in New York. They got into a discussion about a whole bunch of different Transformers that have been released from Takara Tomy such as the Kiss Players line. One figure that came up in their discussion was MP-05 Megatron. According to the distributor, Takara-Tomy will be placing the orange caps on themselves at the factory for a special release of MP-05's that are intended to be sold to the U.S. market so they can pass customs (such as BigBadToyStore.com). Now this is just a rumor and as of right now should be taken with a grain of salt as this is the first and only source who has suggested this. Given the number of online retailers that have stated that the version of MP-05 that will be "capped", it makes sense that this would be a change from the factory.

Here are some relevant news to look back at:
Hobby Link Japan to add safety tip
BBTS to Carry Modified MP-05 Megatron

And below is the actual toy laws for the US:

?1150.2 Prohibitions. No person shall manufacture, enter into commerce, ship, transport, or receive any toy, look-alike, or imitation firearm (‘‘device’’) covered by this part as set forth in ?1150.1 of this part unless such device contains, or has affixed to it, one of the markings set forth in ?1150.3 of this part.

?1150.3 Approved markings. The following markings are approved by the Secretary of Commerce: (a) A blaze orange (Federal Standard 595a, February, 1987, color number 12199, issued by the General Services Administration) or orange color brighter than that specified by the federal standard color number, solid plug permanently affixed to the muzzle end of the barrel as an integral part of the entire device and recessed no more than 6 millimeters from the muzzle end of the barrel.

(b) A blaze orange (Federal Standard 595a, February, 1987, color number 12199, issued by the General Services Administration) or orange color brighter than that specified by the Federal Standard color number, marking permanently affixed to the exterior surface of the barrel, covering the circumference of the barrel from the muzzle end for a depth of at least 6 millimeters.

Well it will be a crying shame if that is the case.

Allow me to demonstrate

And just to clarify by "special US release" that does not mean a Hasbro release like 20th anniversary Prime. The distributor said that it would be the same MP-05 Japanese megatron but with a orange cap so it can go out to places Like HLJ.com for sale in the US.

Take it with salt though people.

Air Commander Starscream wrote:And just to clarify by "special US release" that does not mean a Hasbro release like 20th anniversary Prime. The distributor said that it would be the same MP-05 Japanese megatron but with a orange cap so it can go out to places Like HLJ.com for sale in the US.

Take it with salt though people.

Well put my friend. Yet I still can't help but feel alot of people will enter this discussion in page 7 and ask "OMFG! THEY ARE RELEASING THIS IN THE USA!!!"

Either way, I'm salting lunch with it right now.

Redimus wrote:Hopefully it'll be one of those: 'it has a cap which you shouldnt take off, no matter how much it spoils it, you shouldnt take it off by simply unscrewing it, no you shouldt, nudge nudge, wink wink'.

Like the "Do Not Remove" tags from Mattress's.

That's awfully thoughtful of them. It may be a crying shame, but paying a lot of money for a tf to be confiscated and destroyed is also a crying shame. Look on the bright side; paint it black!

That's what I was thinking Redimus. They probably recognize that the demand will be even higher over here, just like MP Starscream

I'm thinking I'll just buy MP-05 at Botcon. No fuss, no customs issues (others will have dealt with it already), no worry.

well i have two sides to this because i am in law enforcement i feel as a fan it sucks that there has to be a orange cap on 100 dollar megatron masterpiece it is totally going to ruin it but as a police officer i think this the only way we can have this "toy gun" imported in a society that we live in. we have arrested 14 year olds for having 357 magnums and just plain out regular guns so imagine if a kid pulls this out on you a stop how it would make u feel if u have to use deadly physical force i think in all as being in law enforcement this "toy gun" should not be imported at all, but as fan it is great reproduction and will be awesome to have but i do not want to have deal with this at work it would really suck!!!

Chops13 wrote:well i have two sides to this because i am in law enforcement i feel as a fan it sucks that there has to be a orange cap on 100 dollar megatron masterpiece it is totally going to ruin it but as a police officer i think this the only way we can have this "toy gun" imported in a society that we live in. we have arrested 14 year olds for having 357 magnums and just plain out regular guns so imagine if a kid pulls this out on you a stop how it would make u feel if u have to use deadly physical force i think in all as being in law enforcement this "toy gun" should not be imported at all, but as fan it is great reproduction and will be awesome to have but i do not want to have deal with this at work it would really suck!!!

With as many as will actually get to the US and the even fewer which might end up in the hands of children, I'd say it's more likely that the kid will have a real gun than MP-05 Megatron.

As for me, I need that MP-05 so I can have an even bigger gun against my head.

Stop looking for a punchline, there isn't one!

I am praying Fan to Fan makes it through customs!(~()()~!

unfortunately your right it is easier for kids to get a real gun bit what i am saying if that one kid gets a hold of this "toy gun" it is just one more stupid thing we can avoid from happening. there has to be an easier way to solve this situation then messing up a one hundred dollar toy !!

I don't care. It's still Megatron. And of course, it could be much...much worse.

omg its not g1 if they change one thing its not g1 thats how most of the g1 fans act. Well heres gow u fix the tip saw it off and then use touch up paint.

Either way, i'm still getting it! It's one of the best representations of Megs ever!! The tip can always be painted or like someone else suggested, simply cut off.

I personally don't mind this. I have no intention of waving this in front of nobody because that is not my nature. Even if the cap is put by a third party I wouldn't mind either as I would have the toy opened anyway because if I shell out that much $$$ I MUST have the satisfaction of "playing" (i.e. transforming) it. Otherwise I would rather stare at pics on the PC.

But if this is going to be such a hassle, there should be an alternative, like a BinalTech-fashioned tank with plenty of details or a smaller but insanelly detailed released with plenty of stuff like must anime mecha kits. I will be conformed with everything that do NOT look like Live Megatron.

Hot_Rod wrote:So Takara does think about potential worldwide sales. As in all of life, you do what ever you can to help yourself make a buck and a living.

Ah... you are starting to understand Japanese business logic at its core.

Down_Shift wrote:Well it will be a crying shame if that is the case.

Allow me to demonstrate

I'm glad to be living in Japan.

If this turns out to be true, how will Takara determine which places get an orange cap? Will the retailers have a choice to choose? There are some Japanese retailers and Canadian retailers that sell to the U.S.

I understand the thinking of adding the orange cap to the barrel tip, as Im sure that there are people in the States who could confuse a huge, oversized hand pistol as the real deal.

Oh, man, I think Ebay is about to become my new best friend.

Another reason why I'm happy not to be American. I'll make sure my version is uncapped. You suck USA.